COSTA: This 30-hectare bushland reserve is at the headwaters
of the Katoomba Falls Creek, up in the Blue Mountains,
and it's the traditional lands of the Gundungurra and Dharug people.
One of the local Gundungurra men is David King.
There are many stories down here,
and not just the Aboriginal community
but also the broader community that have come down here
and just connected to this beautiful place.
One of the senior traditional owners is Aunty Sharyn Halls,
and like David, she also has a strong connection with this place.
I think the significance
and the ongoing connection people actually have here
is because what it became back in 1901.
This is where we actually settled, um,
and it became an Aboriginal mission,
and in the beginning, um, there was...
..in the first census,
there was eight Aboriginal families living here,
but over the years, um, and through into World War II,
more families were living here.
My mum was born here in 1926. She was moved...removed about 1934, '35.
And...
..then in the...in the '50s,
there was a decision made to build a racetrack.
So you've got a community living here,
but in some people's eyes, they didn't exist,
so they just came in and flattened the whole place.
So that then meant that what was pretty much a natural area
was then flattened dirt.
And then they built the bitumen around the outside
and they ran a car-racing track,
and then, thankfully, some of the aunts...
..I got to sit with many years ago, uh,
a lot of other people that I probably never met,
fought for this country, it was still in their heart.
It...it's...it's your home. It's your...it's your Aboriginal place.
So then, in 2002, um, it got handed back.
With the support of local Aboriginal people like Aunty Sharyn,
David and Garguree Swamp Care began working
to restore this important site back to what it once was.
Over the years, what we've been left with is...
..what would have been a swamp area.
We do have swamp right around us here, so...
..2011, when Aunty Sharyn gave me the phone call, said,
"Could you come up and work with us and...
"..help restore this area," this is where we started,
so you got your swamp.
We've then got into...
..what I would call into a rainforest heath country,
back into your open woodland,
so you've got your big gum trees up the top of the ridge.
The construction of the racetrack
had a big impact on this delicate environment.
The biggest damage was done by putting the drains
through the middle of the swamps,
so our first step was to try and get the swamp
functioning how it used to be.
It was, like, the centrepiece,
because the water predominantly flowed through Middle Swamp.
So once we got a good hold on that,
it made it a bit more productive to start moving outwards.
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
Volunteers gather monthly to lend a hand.
It's open to everyone,
with people coming from all over the surrounding Blue Mountains area.
Why is bush care important, do you think?
Mmm...makes nature look nicer and...
..makes it go back to the way it was
and it helps other animals survive.
I really think that we need to return
some of the privilege we've had.
And I have a passion for bush, absolute love and passion.
Restoring a wet area on this scale has other challenges as well.
Any revegetation project has to come face to face with weeds.
Yeah.
Where is the supply chain for your weeds? Where are they coming from?
Three main areas.
Uh, the main one is water.
The gullies, the swamp area,
sits inside of a bowl.
All the water rushes into this area,
heads down to Katoomba Falls, out into the valley,
so...everyone has beautiful gardens.
Everyone has their different tastes.
We're trying to make this native Australian down here.
Um, with the water comes all the plants...
And the seeds. ..comes all the weeds.
So we get good honeysuckle.
Good bit of rose. Good bit of montbretia.
Good bit of privet.
A smaller part, wind and birds.
How important is the work that's... Oh.
..going on, the restoration?
The restoration and the work we do here is extremely important.
It's...it's about sharing our story, of place,
but it's also about bringing back to people
the connection we have with everything that happens here.
So each plant that we put in has its own story and its own life cycle,
and you can feel the past as well as the present, yeah.
What are some of the key species you're reintroducing to this area?
We're aiming along these swamp edges, so...
..tea trees...
..and Gahnias.
Some Dianella.
They are very good wet area plants,
very good to get that edge to hold it
so we don't see any of the... the silt run-off
that you might see with, um, some of the other native species,
but the...the tea tree was used for antiseptic.
The Gahnia was used for cooking.
The Dianella's like your... your blueberry.
This might seem like a beautiful place
combined with a successful revegetation project,
but David is looking a lot deeper.
As you bring back what is your natural country,
the country where the stories were,
a lot of the people then remember.
So, that's one key driver for me, is to try and get that...
..that bit of bush back where they remember.